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Canary Wharf Classic 2020
08 - 13 Mar
London, UK,
$109k |
Round two
09/10 Mar |
Quarters
11 Mar |
Semis
12 Mar |
Final
13 Mar |
[1] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY)
v
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) |
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[5] Simon Rösner (GER)
v
[9/16] Saurav Ghosal (IND) |
[6] Diego Elias (PER)
v
[9/16] James Willstrop (ENG) |
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[3] Tarek Momen (EGY)
v
Daryl Selby (ENG) |
[4] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
v
Greg Lobban (SCO) |
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[7] Marwan Elshorbagy (EGY)
v
[9/16] Omar Mosaad (EGY) |
[8] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY)
v
[9/16] Fares Dessouky (EGY) |
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Declan James (ENG)
v
[2] Ali Farag (EGY) |
Round one |
[1] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY) bye
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) bt [9/16] Gregoire Marche (FRA)
12-10, 11-8 (46m)
[9/16] Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt Tom Richards (ENG) 11-7, 11-7
(25m)
[5] Simon Rösner (GER) bye
[6] Diego Elias (PER) bye
[9/16] James Willstrop (ENG) bt [WC] Richie Fallows (ENG)
11-5, 11-6 (21m)
Daryl Selby (ENG) bt [9/16] Joel Makin (WAL) 11-8, 15-13
(52m)
[3] Tarek Momen (EGY) bye
[4] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) bye
Greg Lobban (SCO) bt [9/16] Mazen Hesham (EGY) 11-6, 11-7
(25m)
[9/16] Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt Eain Yow Ng (MAS) 7-11, 14-12,
11-8 (69m)
[7] Marwan Elshorbagy (EGY) bye
[8] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) bye
[9/16] Fares Dessouky (EGY) bt Raphael Kandra (GER) 8-11,
11-3, 11-5 (35m)
Declan James (ENG) bt [9/16] Adrian Waller (ENG) 12-10, 11-6
(43m)
[2] Ali Farag (EGY) bye
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DAY 1
Selby, Castagnet & Lobban Cause Shocks On First Day In Canary
Wharf
England’s
Daryl Selby provided the biggest shock on the opening day of the 2020 St.
James’s Place Canary Wharf Classic to beat Welsh World No.10 Joel Makin in the
first round of the tournament taking place in London's spectacular East
Wintergarden.
It was the third time that the pair were meeting on the PSA World Tour, after
facing off against each other twice in the space of six days in September 2016,
and like the first two, this one went the way of the Englishman as well.
The two-game clash lasted more than 50 minutes, with both players producing
sublime squash in a match that looked like it would never end.
After going 6-0 up in the first, Selby went on to take the vital opening game,
but then found himself trailing heavily in the second with Makin ahead 5-10.
However, the Englishman saved seven game balls to come back an win it 15-13,
taking the victory to set up a clash with World Champion Tarek Momen in the last
16.
“I got off to a good start which is important in best-of-three, and I am not
notoriously a good starter. It wasn’t quick, as you would expect with someone
like Joel. I felt like I played good squash, and I stuck to my gameplan quite
well!” Selby admitted.
“At the end of the day, I pulled out some shots at crucial times, especially in
the second game. I had to be positive today because there is now way you are
going to out-manoeuvre Joel. He has earned his place in the top 10 and it is
pleasing for me to get a win over a top 10 guy.
“I'm playing Tarek [Momen] tomorrow and I played the World No.1 in Chicago last
week, now the World Champion this week. I might be coming to the end but I love
testing myself against the best guys to see how close I can get, just constantly
trying to push and finish strong.”
There
were a couple of other surprise results on the opening day, with Frenchman
Mathieu Castagnet and Scotland’s Greg Lobban earning victories over France’s
Gregoire Marche and Egypt’s Mazen Hesham, respectively.
World No.22 Castagnet got the better of his compatriot on the glass court after
battling through a lengthy first game, taking it after half an hour. The second
game was slightly more straight-forward, as he eventually came through to take
the win, booking his place in the second round, where he will face World No.1
Mohamed ElShorbagy.
Lobban
got the better of Hesham, who had pulled out of his third round clash at the
Windy City Open presented by the Walter Family in Chicago last week, and he was
clearly not fully fit here, but the Scot pushed on to secure victory, booking
his place against Karim Abdel Gawad on Tuesday.
“I didn’t know which Mazen was going to turn up. I knew he was not 100%, but for
me, even Mazen at 50 or 60% is a good win. You never know when he is going to
roll out some winners, but I wish him a speedy recovery and hopefully he gets
back to full fitness!” Lobban said.
Elsewhere, there were victories for the English pair of Declan James and James
Willstrop, the Egyptian duo of Omar Mosaad and Fares Dessouky, and India’s
Saurav Ghosal, who all advance to the second round of the PSA Gold tournament.
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Previews
World Champion Momen Handed Tricky Fixtures as Canary Wharf
Classic Draw is Released
World
Champion Tarek Momen has been handed a tricky second round tie against either
the in-form Joel Makin or local favourite Daryl Selby after the draw for the St.
James’s Place Canary Wharf Classic - taking place March 8-13 in London’s iconic
East Wintergarden - was released today.
Momen has finished as runner-up at this tournament on two occasions, first to
World No.1 Mohamed ElShorbagy in 2018 and then to New Zealand’s Paul Coll last
year. However, the World No.3 avenged that defeat to Coll in November 2019 as he
got his hands on the biggest trophy in men’s squash - the PSA World Championship
- and he will look to make it third time lucky this time around at the PSA World
Tour Gold tournament.
Momen is predicted to come up against World No.11 Makin in round two and will
need to end a two-match losing streak to the Welshman after defeats in
November’s CIB Egyptian Squash Open and in December’s WSF Men’s World Team
Squash Championship.
The winner of that match is seeded to play the dangerous World No.7 Diego Elias
in the quarter-finals, while ElShorbagy could lie in wait in the semi-finals.
The bottom half of the draw sees World No.2 Ali Farag pitted against the winner
of an all-English battle between Adrian Waller and Declan James.
He will need to come through a field that contains former World No.1 Karim Abdel
Gawad, 2017 World Championship runner-up Marwan ElShorbagy and 2018-19 PSA World
Tour Finals runner-up Mohamed Abouelghar if he is to reach a first Canary Wharf
Classic final.
There are six Englishman involved in the draw, with three-time World No.1 James
Willstrop taking on tournament wildcard Richie Fallows in round one, while Tom
Richards lines up against Saurav Ghosal of India.
"The draw has thrown up some blockbuster matches right from day one, with the
world’s best set to go head-to-head in front of a packed house at East
Wintergarden," said Tournament Director Tim Garner.
"The Canary Wharf Classic spectators are amongst the most knowledgable and
passionate on the PSA World Tour, and East Wintergarden is transformed into a
cauldron of noise whenever these top-class athletes do battle on court.
"With a plethora of current and former World Champions and World No.1s in
attendance, I expect this year to be no different and I’m looking forward to
watching the drama unfold next month."
The Canary Wharf Classic will use a best-of-three games scoring format up to and
including the quarter-finals for a third year in succession. The semi-finals and
final will revert to traditional best-of-five scoring.
All of the action from East Wintergarden will be streamed live on SQUASHTV (rest
of world), Eurosport Player (Europe only) and the official PSA World Tour
Facebook page (excluding Europe & Japan), while the semi-finals and final will
also be shown live on multiple mainstream broadcasters around the globe.
Fans can stay up-to-date with the latest news on the tournament by visiting the event's official
website or by following the Canary Wharf Classic on Twitter
2020 St. James’s Place Canary Wharf Classic – Draw
[1] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) [bye]
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) v [9/16] Gregoire Marche (FRA)
[9/16] Saurav Ghosal (IND) v Tom Richards (ENG)
[5] Simon Rösner (GER) [bye]
[6] Diego Elias (PER) [bye]
[WC] Richie Fallows (ENG) v [9/16] James Willstrop (ENG)
[9/16] Joel Makin (WAL) v Daryl Selby (ENG)
[3] Tarek Momen (EGY) [bye]
[4] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) [bye]
Greg Lobban (SCO) v [9/16] Mazen Hesham (EGY)
[9/16] Omar Mosaad (EGY) v Eain Yow Ng (MAS)
[7] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) [bye]
[8] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) [bye]
Raphael Kandra (GER) v [9/16] Fares Dessouky (EGY)
[9/16] Adrian Waller (ENG) v Declan James (ENG)
[2] Ali Farag (EGY) [bye]
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World-Class Draw Confirmed for Canary Wharf Classic
World
No.1 Mohamed ElShorbagy headlines a stellar draw for the St. James’s Place
Canary Wharf Classic, which will take place at London’s stunning East
Wintergarden between March 8-13.
Now in its 17th year, the PSA World Tour Gold tournament continues to attract
the world’s leading players with World Champion Tarek Momen and former World
No.1s Ali Farag and Karim Abdel Gawad also featuring alongside 2018 winner
ElShorbagy.
ElShorbagy bowed out at last year’s tournament at the semi-final stage to
eventual runner-up Momen and will be looking to go further this season after
reclaiming his place at the top of the World Rankings this month.
Also involved is Germany’s World No.6 Simon Rosner, Peru’s World No.7 Diego
Elias, Egypt’s World No.8 Marwan ElShorbagy and World No.9 Mohamed Abouelghar.
Wales’ World No.11 Joel Makin heads up the British contingent at the event
following an impressive season. The 25-year-old will be joined by Englishmen
James Willstrop, Adrian Waller, Declan James, Daryl Selby and Tom Richards,
while London-born Richie Fallows takes the wildcard spot.
“This is the strongest draw in the history of the tournament," said Tournament
Director Tim Garner.
"Having four world champions at the top of the list is simply amazing. It's a
major bonus all round, and a wonderful way to begin our partnership with our new
title sponsors St. James's Place Wealth Management.
"It's also a huge bonus for the thousands of loyal fans who have clamoured for
every available ticket months in advance and who generate such a brilliant
atmosphere at the East Wintergarden. Everyone is looking forward to an
incredible week of drama and entertainment as these titans of the game take to
the court."
A best-of-three games scoring format will take place at the event for the third
year running. First round, second round and quarter final matches will be played
using the format, while semi-finals and the final will revert to the traditional
best-of-five games scoring.
Fans can stay up-to-date with the latest news on the tournament by visiting the
event's official website or by following the Canary Wharf Classic on Twitter.
2020 St. James’s Place Canary Wharf Classic – Entry List
1) Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY)
2) Ali Farag (EGY)
3) Tarek Momen (EGY)
4) Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
5) Simon Rosner (GER)
6) Diego Elias (PER)
7) Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY)
8) Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY)
9) Joel Makin (WAL)
10) Fares Dessouky (EGY)
11) Saurav Ghosal (IND)
12) Gregoire Marche (FRA)
13) Mazen Hesham (EGY)
14) Omar Mosaad (EGY)
15) James Willstrop (ENG)
16) Adrian Waller (ENG)
17) Declan James (ENG)
18) Daryl Selby (ENG)
19) Mathieu Castagnet (FRA)
20) Tom Richards (ENG)
21) Greg Lobban (SCO)
22) Raphael Kandra (GER)
23) Eain Yow Ng (MAS)
Wildcard) Richie Fallows (ENG)
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